Black Magick - Jameson Irish Whiskey Barrels
Voodoo Brewing Co.

Bottled on 9/15/2020; consumed on 9/10/2022

Pours a silky, motor-oil black body topped with a steady finger and a half of hazelnut-hued foam; decent head retention leaves a sparse layer cap, expansive, creamy collar, and minimal-no lacing holding with any longevity to the walls of the glass.

Aroma sees a dry, woody spice develop an almost floral subtext from which attenuated roast builds against a natural barrel char, levying fresh cocoa and dark fruit esters across the bouquet.

Taste opens to subtle baked apple and more pronounced plum as initially quiet whiskey lingers through nutty barrel; rich, charry vanilla builds to a German chocolate cake batter crescendo, while ample roast throughout produces toasty cacao residuals.

Mouthfeel shows a medium body accompanied by a subtle carbonation, leaving silky textures to greet a sticky char over the mid-palate, a consistent equilibrium maintained between prickly roast and treacly fluidity as a slow-building warmth interjects over time.

A natural harmony of interaction between whiskey and malt sees an expansive progression of both weight and function; the defter fruitiness of the Jameson barrels belying the established roast and robust barrel character for a brilliantly contradictory fusion of delicate whiskey grain detailing malty viscosity.

Stark black with a short mocha head that fizzles out quickly to a thin but consistently firm collar.

Smell is rather assertively potent, with peppery whiskey cutting through deeply dark chocolate and hints of hickory that contain a little nuttiness.

Taste is far more unique and difficult to put my finger on. The fairly fudgy dark chocolate nose is quickly transformed by the barrel tannin into a sort of mocha ice cream with rum soaked vanilla bean on the palate, finishing with impressively drying Spanish peanuts. But this all assumes you understand that this is the translation in my mind from my palate as the oak interplays with the chocolatey malt. And that malt is unusually, richly chocolatey relative to other Black Magicks, unless the Jameson adds a sweetness that perfectly compliments it.

While the body is fairly light, the crisp carbonation leads into a chewy swallow that lingers seductively for days, at times exhaling an unexpected hint of Neapolitan ice cream, complete with the faintest hint of that chocolate strawberry combo.

Voodoo Brewing Black Magick aged in Irish Whiskey Barrels

Pours night black with no head to speak of, but a quickly vanishing, dark beige lacing.

The aromas on this are defined by old, spicy oak, milk chocolate, lighter molasses and earthy cinnamon among toasty coconut.

Got a fuller bodied mouthfeel to it with a fitting lower, yet sparkly carbonation and lots of whipped cream adding to a decadent smoothness.

Tastes of oily dark chocolate, spicy molasses a hint of peat and dry, roasty, grainy malts, which manage to blend into the prominent spiciness of the oak flawlessly. Turns sweeter and spicier then with the barrel becoming even more apparent, adding a matured booze warmth to the flavors, together with some melting toffee. Finishes with layers of chocolate, dried figs, utmost spicy molasses and a lasting, throat glowing barrel dryness, which stays a long time on the tongue.

Rich, complex and well working, the balance in this is spot on, as are the flavors, reminding me of a slightly peaty, older BCBS.

Not impressed with the fizzy head.

The smell while good for a big stout wasn't overly impressive. I had it at 4.25 but the heavy whiffs of brown sugar I couldn't ignore bumped me into quite good 4.5 territory.

Taste is oh my... this is the best BM I've had since orange wax (and nearly all others have been letdowns). Its incredible the variation in these beers and it is NOT due to the barrel.

This beer is so rich and scooo much sweeter than the last 5 or 6 black magicks I've had (blantons, ec, white wax, condom wax, French oak). This blows all of those out the water and is right there with orange wax and silver wax.

Feel is good.

Overall if I had to rank the magicks ive had - orange, purple, silver, ec, condom, white, blantons, French oak, wild turkey. The first 3 are world class, the next 3 are very good, the last 3 forgettable to quite bad.

Its unreal how these beer vary.

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9-17-22 notes

Jameson black magick. Funny that everyone slept on this one because it wasn't aged in some buffalo trace distillery bourbon. Blantons black magick was among the worst ive had of the series and this one was perhaps the best of the series and furthermore up there with a month the best stouts ive ever had. Excited to revisit this. Bottle date 9-15-20.


Look is less stellar than I hope for in a stout. Carbonation is on the fizzier side where I prefer frothy.


Smell is magical. No lunch intended. So distinct to voodoo black magick and so aromatic without smelling overly sweet or overly roasty.


Taste is milk chocolate. Its not sweet, its not bitter, it's not hot, its extremely middle of the road. I wish there was something to compare this to but i can't really. Ive said it before and I still believe that voodoo tweaks this beer each time and it's not the exact same recipe. The variation is too much to just be the barrels. With this jameson aged version I would swear there is lactose in it. It taste like black magick with lactose.

 

Thought this beer would be lacking with the barrel choice but boy was I wrong. Big chocolate and oak bomb. Coats the glass and has that usual Magick depth and richness.